CAL STATE FULLERTON NOTEBOOK : Titans Left Licking Bruises After Victory

The irony wasn’t lost on Coach Gene Murphy, who suffered his share of losses in Cal State Fullerton’s 38-24 victory Saturday over Sonoma State.

Throughout the summer, when discussion turned to Saturday’s game at Auburn and the Sept. 15 game at Mississippi State, Murphy said his biggest concern wasn’t that the Titans might get blown out by the Southeastern Conference schools. It was that his players’ knees might get blown out and ankles might get twisted and arms might get broken.

Murphy worried that the Titans might be so physically overwhelmed by the Tigers and Bulldogs that they wouldn’t have enough healthy players to compete in the Big West Conference.

So what happens when the Titans open the season against Division II Sonoma State? They lose starting tailback Deon Thomas, who suffered ligament damage in his left knee and is out for the season.

They lose their only returning offensive line starter, guard Shannon Illingworth, who left the game in the first half with a hyperextended left elbow and is doubtful for Saturday. And they might lose one of their top receivers, Kerry Reed, who strained knee ligaments in the first half and is questionable for Saturday.

“I don’t want to say what I want to say because it will come back to haunt me,” Murphy said of the next two games.

In past games against schools such as Louisiana State, Florida and West Virginia, the Titans have somehow managed to escape serious injury, Murphy said in August. But he wasn’t about to repeat that thought.

Why jinx himself? This is a coach who, about a month before the season, dreamed that his third-string quarterback, kicker Phil Nevin, was taking snaps in games.

It hasn’t reached that point, but the situation certainly isn’t good for the Titans, especially at running back. Reggie Yarbrough, who was expecting to spell Thomas and give Fullerton two solid running threats, will have to assume the bulk of the rushing load.

And the depth chart at the position isn’t too deep. Danny Pasquil, a redshirt freshman, and Mike Collins, a senior walk-on, both first-year varsity players, will back up Yarbrough.

All three--barring injury, of course--are expected to see plenty of action in the next two weeks, because Murphy is not about to sacrifice Yarbrough to the Tigers and Bulldogs.

“He’s not going to run the ball 35 times a game, that’s for sure,” Murphy said.

Stand by your man: Murphy showed some restraint Saturday in his handling of senior quarterback Paul Schulte, who was making his first start since his senior year at Woodlake High School in 1985.

Schulte started out strong, completing six of his first eight attempts, but suffered a cold spell late in the first quarter and midway through the second, missing on seven of eight attempts.

Murphy could have pulled Schulte for redshirt freshman Terry Payne, who battled Schulte for the starting job throughout training camp, but Murphy didn’t even have Payne warming up on the sidelines.

Instead of looking over his shoulder, Schulte was able to concentrate on the game and finished with decent numbers, completing 20 of 41 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns.

Schulte snapped out of his slump by completing six consecutive passes for 71 yards during an 11-play, 80-yard scoring drive late in the first half.

“It was important to show confidence in him,” Murphy said. “If he has a couple of bad series, what do you do, yank him? Part of being a quarterback is learning to go through the good times and the bad times. We’re all great during the good times, but how about when you fumble or throw an interception?”

Comeback Clarence: Fullerton linebacker Clarence Siler, who was shot twice during an altercation outside a Fullerton nightclub in April, showed Saturday that he hasn’t been slowed by the bullets still lodged in his chest and left wrist.

Siler had four unassisted tackles, four assisted tackles, a fumble recovery and a sack for a loss of five yards. On one fourth-quarter play, Siler burst past the Cossacks’ center and grabbed quarterback Ed Bailey as he tried to pitch to running back Henry Milton.

Siler, who was named the team’s defensive player of the week for his efforts, forced a bad pitch, which Milton fumbled and recovered for a loss of eight yards.

“He showed why he’s one of the best players in the conference,” Murphy said. “He has excellent speed and made some great plays.”

Freak play: In his 27 years as a college coach, Murphy had never seen a play such as the one he saw in the fourth quarter Saturday when Sonoma State quarterback John Spear apparently completed not one, but two passes, including one for an apparent touchdown.

Spear dropped back from the Titan two-yard line and had his pass blocked by Fullerton lineman Jamal Jones. Spear caught the deflection and then fired a pass to Deangelo Mitchell in the end zone.

“That was a heck of a deal,” Murphy said.

One that fell through, though. The touchdown was nullified because of an illegal forward pass penalty.

Titan Notes

Fullerton Coach Gene Murphy wasn’t happy about a third-quarter incident in which Titan punter Phil Nevin shoved Sonoma State’s Lenny Wagnor. Wagnor had made contact with Nevin after a punt, and Nevin retaliated with a shove. Nevin drew a 15-yard personal foul, then argued the call with an official. That drew the ire of Nevin’s coach. “That’s all cleared up,” Murphy said. “That won’t happen again on the field or off.” . . . Junior Michael Jones was named defensive player of the week, but Murphy thought so little of his offense--despite Fullerton’s 38 points--that he didn’t name an offensive player of the week. “We made a multitude of mistakes, but not ones that can’t be corrected,” Murphy said. . . . There is no award, but the hit of the game was by Titan nose guard Gary Thornton in the first quarter. Sonoma State’s Henry Milton had caught a pass in the left flat and was dancing his way around a few defenders, trying to gain some extra yards. Thornton ran from midfield to the sideline and flattened Milton, who never saw Thornton coming. “That was a big-time hit,” Murphy said. . . . Mark King, a flanker from Palomar College in San Diego, and Leonard Hudson, a cornerback from Mt. San Antonio College, both expected to contribute this season, have been declared academically ineligible to play, Murphy said.